


The Scheme

by Void64



Series: A Grand Scheme [1]
Category: Death Note & Related Fandoms, Death Note (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Another Note: The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases, Behind the Scenes, Beyond Birthday Being Creepy, Blood and Gore, Complicated Relationships, Crimes & Criminals, Cute Kids, F/M, Family Feels, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, From the start of it all to the end, Hate to Love, Kira Case, Light is a Dick, Light is in Wammy House, M/M, Meddling Kids, More tags later, One-Sided Attraction, Organized Crime, Parents Are Alive, Pre Wammy Era, Psychology, Suspense, The Kids are not orphans, They were taken from their homes, Three Arcs, Trilogy, Twisted, Violence, Wammy House, Wammy's Era, What-If, first part, scheme
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-08
Updated: 2017-12-08
Packaged: 2019-01-10 19:00:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12305625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Void64/pseuds/Void64
Summary: The Whammy House was a product of the worldwide governmental act of protection for all the young Genii of the world. They were taken from life as they knew it and brought together in the establishment. They were taught the cutthroat ways of the system. They were trained to be the world’s revolutionists. They were brought up to be a family. Hints of Multiple Pairings included.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> If you've seen this fic before, it's cuz I had started to post it on Fanfiction . net, but I've decided to shift it to ao3. This is still my own original work. A lot of careful thought has been put into every chapter, and the tones are serious and will be boring to some. There will be fluff moments, I promise- especially in this first book of this trilogy, but lets see... 
> 
> On the other hand, thank you for choosing to read this fic. (^_^)/ It'll mean so much if you'll enjoy it despite its slow start. Hope you like it (V)

**The Scheme**  
Chapter One:  
Prologue

The glass panels shone under the moonlight, the large building silent and sturdy. It added to the illusion that the building was essentially empty, surrounded by the night’s dark gaze and the ever-present nightly crowd as the shops closed down. It wasn’t too suspicious that the building was closed at this hour, it was a week-end and they were known to close early with very few loitering around.

  


No one could guess that the said building was hosting many of the world’s leaders, along with a few respectable well known figureheads, in a large conference. Well, many hadn’t arrived personally or it would have caused a big issue with the reporters, but rather sent their trusted assistants with a computer connected to them. Those who could arrive inconspicuously did so.

  


The conference was held to discuss the latest problems of the leaders- the loss of control they had on their citizens, the rise in criminals worldwide, and the general lack of capable men and women to help the world improve. Essentially, they were there to complain about their problems.

  


Quillish Whammy was secretly amused by the ruckus all of them were making inside the sealed hall. It was always fun to watch grown men fight like children, scratching up old wounds and screaming possessively over their ‘toys’. However, he did not come here to oversee a whole meeting being wasted on fights when he could finally use this opportunity to successfully start up his plans.

  


Mr. Whammy gently pushed back his chair and tapped on his given microphone twice. The motion had failed to catch any of their attention. He sighed and slowly loosened the connection of the wires slightly, before tapping again. The earsplitting screech had done its job nicely, so Quillish just smiled politely and readjusted the connection. He tapped again to check and began.

  


“My dear friends, I wish to propose a plan of action,” Watching them curiously lean over their chairs, he continued. “As many of you know, my IQ nearly exceeds 170 by preconceived standards. What I propose will require co-operation by most of you. And, you also may know that the modern youth is undeniably smarter than many of us combined, and they are young enough to have potential to turn into something great. With that being said, I propose creating an organization that will protect these talented individuals and _guide_ them towards the right path. There are obviously many prodigal children out there; we just have to gather them and raise them properly.”

  


There was a low hum of murmuring surrounding him, and Quillish Whammy took his time surveying the crowd around him- a definitely interested crowd. Quillish smiled politely, and softly cleared his throat, recapturing their attention. “Of course, we would need to test your citizens on the basis of their general intelligence. The only issue is that we would need to test _everyone-_ the rich, the average, the poor and the underground criminals- that are under the age range.” He could hear a few gasps surrounding him, and he sighed, expecting that.

  


They all sat silently jotting notes and questions, with a common courtesy to wait until he finished explaining before commenting on anything. Mr. Whammy had to smile at that, it was one of the few things he actually liked about most of them- their manners. “All under the age range of 17 to 4 should be tested, modified for the different ages, of course. It would cause a lot of problems, yes, but I assure you all that if it is a success, then the rest would be easy.”

  


Then Quillish Whammy gave a bow and prepared himself to answer the questions.

  


“The delegate of the republic of North and South Korea asks whether it is necessary for all countries to join your programme. This delegate feels it to be unnecessary and a waste of crucial time.”

  


Mr. Whammy nodded sagely, “Of course, it is not necessary for all countries to join. I have heard well of some countries, many of their young being smart and helpful to keep their countries prosperous.”

  


“The delegate of the United States of America feels the need to ask what we should tell our general public. This delegate feels that the programme you are suggesting will cause a riot among this delegate’s citizens. The press would have a field day over an ‘unnamed conspiracy by the governments of the world’ and ‘governments planning world domination’. This delegate questions how you would prevent this.”

  


“The place should be of high security and in a secret location. It would be best to inform the public that the test was a failure and ask the families of the selected to be silent about it. With proper procedure, the families will remain silent.” Quillish sighed, “All the press will know is that this was another failed attempt by all the governments to help the country improve. We will erase all existing data of the selected youth for maximum security.”

  


“The delegate of Nepal wishes to know whether Mr. Whammy has heard of the law stating that each citizen has its own rights that the government is not privy to violate.”

  


Quillish smiled at that one. “Yes, but the citizens of a country are also obliged to help their country in the best way they can. Furthermore, I know that most of those around us have security systems that already violate that rule of privacy. I’m sure most of you will not have much problem with this one.”

  


Mr. Whammy then frowned, and decided to elaborate some more. “This is to protect the extraordinary from harm, and to guide them properly. The teaching staff would be of the very best, and will imprint a need to serve their countries into the children. They’ll be raised to look out for a common good and with a sense of justice. I believe that with proper funding, this will most definitely succeed. You can trust the preparation of the test by me and my close friend, Mr. Rodger.”

  


Quillish had to smile at the most crucial question came to mind. “What will the organization be called?” He closed his eyes, stroking his bushy gray moustache as he answered, “The Whammy House”

  


He spoke a bit further, easing the worries of some of them and making them trust him. His calm smile remained throughout as the governments joined together to support his plans on ‘protecting the young prodigies and leading them to the right path.’ When the discussion ended, they dismissed the matter and began discussing about the poverty of the world currently.

  


Quillish sighed contently and paid little attention to the rest of the meeting. They could handle themselves without him for a while. He had more important things to think about. He finally was going to get what he had always wanted- a family.

  


* * *

_  
_

_“-They called it the ‘The Young Genii Protection Act’, and it seemed as if no one could escape assessment. It began on the developed countries first- like the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, New Zealand, Germany, Australia, Canada, and others. Currently, there are only a few who haven’t employed these tests. However, the main question is not ‘What is happening?’ but rather ‘Why is it happening?’- Why do our leaders suddenly seem interested in something they have never focused on before? Why now? Why worldwide? What are they planning? And the most important question- what do they want to do with those children once they get their hands on them?_

_  
_

_This is reporter Takada speaking live outside our president’s residence, and I assure you all, that I will not rest until I get all the answers-”_

  


Soichiro Yagami sighed and switched off the television. Honestly, the reporters these days made a fuss about nearly everything. He worked in the police force and knew for a fact that no government would cause this big of a commotion for a scheme of sorts. It caused too much of a mess and dragged a lot of attention onto themselves.

  


“Hey, Otoo-san, do you want a cool glass of water? You look tired.” Spoke his daughter, Sayu Yagami, offering the said glass of water with one hand.

  


Soichiro smiled wearily and took it from her, “Of course, thank you.”

  


“Okay, then, I’m going to Raito-nii-san for help in my homework,” She grinned, skipping out of the living room before her father could reply.

  


Soichiro was a proud father of two lovely children who barely did much wrong. There was his youngest daughter, Sayu, who was bright, cheerful, outgoing, yet polite. She was his princess and thrived in the attention. Like any other close siblings, she too liked to pester her brother for nearly everything- but it was obvious she cared. She was definitely smart, but he wasn’t really worried about her right now.

  


And then, there was his eldest son, Raito Yagami. Raito had always been clever and active since he was young. He has won many awards and holds records in many academic and sports related events, both at his school and regional competitions. He respected his elders, barely ever spoke against his parents and always took care of his sister without complaints. In short, he was the perfect son. He could even be considered as a genius. _That_ is what worried Soichiro Yagami right now.

  


He sighed again, taking another sip of the water. In a few days, they were due to take some sort of tests for the programme. Only then would he know anything for sure. It’s not like he was planning on going against the government, Soichiro snorted. For now, only time will tell what is going to happen- he should not worry too much. Like Sachiko always told him- worrying always gave him grey hairs.

* * *


	2. L Lawlite

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> L Lawlite  
> Alias: L  
> He was no ordianary orphan

There have been talks about it on the streets of England. Some sort of test the government has been forcing anyone under 18 to take. It is truly unfortunate that most of those living in the streets were within that category. 63% of them had already been taken, those living in the streets, and with the current rates, it won’t be soon till the number reached 97.5%- approximately 4 days. Of course, the possibility of gathering all of them was highly unlikely. However, with all the enemies he made round these parts, they would surely expose his position within the next day. He was already luck enough that no one had given his position out yet.

 

L Lawlite wouldn’t necessarily have a problem with that- except for three main factors that suddenly did make it his problem. Firstly, he had no family they would return him to, and he did not want to go to any orphanage again. Those were decently organized compared to the streets, but rather dull. Secondly, he knew he had an extraordinary mind and there was only a 0.04 percent chance that they would ignore him after completing the test. And lastly, he wished to have nothing connecting him and any government- it was improbable that they wanted everyone to take the tests for innocent reasons.

 

His parents, when alive, had engraved a sense to believe in justice onto him since youth. He knew that the government of any country was corrupted, and merely the thought of corruption made him wish to stay away.

 

Low but hurried footsteps echoed around the alley he normally resided in. Mentally calculating the possible weight and size of the person, he immediately recognized that it was Wndy. L closed his eyes and waited until she came close enough before crawling out of his corner between two large dustbins.

 

“Lawlite! C’mon, those bloody gits spilled your spot to the authorities when they were being taken. I heard them say somethin’ ‘bout a young brat living around these parts- real smart kid- or some stupid tripe like that. I know they’re talkin’ ‘bout ya, those bloody wankers!” She spat heavily.

 

L curiously observed her panting figure before nodding and pulling out his bag- all his stock was stored here for situations like these. Wndy was one of the only few he trusted- something which was hard to give when living in the streets. She too had to hide because she was 17, but she could fake being 18 in front of general public. It was only the authorities she had to escape, an easy task once the public thinks you are legal. L on the other hand was scrawny and slouched 15 year old who looked the part. This led him to a major disadvantage.

 

He usually tapped on the security and always changed his haunts at seemingly random orders, but with the higher security recently- he could not do so for a few weeks. He motioned her to follow him, before running with a surprising speed one would not have expected of him on sight. Thankfully, he had a secret escape at the corner of the alley he had discovered and cleared out a week ago.

 

He soon arrived at the blocked end- a cramped space most steered away from. One of the two buildings was a store on sale, but no one had bought it for years. It was highly unusual, but L did not necessarily mind as it served its purpose. He quickly crouched, running his fingers across the bricks.

 

Wndy looked at him like he was losing his mind already, but he quickly told her to be quiet before she could open her mouth. Quickly finding the area of loose bricks, L carefully pushed each one until a hole was made.

 

“Bloody hell, when d’ya find this?”

 

L glimpsed back at her before pushing his bag in and crawling through. “It was imperative to locate an emergency escape when the authorities are looking for all of us. Now please, would you fix the bricks back to their original positions? We will stay here and wait.” he spoke monotone as he sat down with his legs up.

 

Wndy snorted and did as instructed, leaving only a brick open to peak out.

 

Soon enough, the wailing sounds of sirens could be heard. Wndy groaned and quickly jammed the brick back, hoping it would not look suspicious. The sounds of their worried panting filled the room.

 

L bit his thumb as he tried to estimate their dwindling chances of escaping. It would be easy to assume that the police would be examining the alley and would be coincidentally in front of the entrance of the shop. The chances of police checking up on the surrounding buildings were high. They would need to move quickly if they want to escape.  

 

L had outsmarted the cops many times in the seven years he survived on the streets, which was quite a long time. The only difference between then and now is that the opponents were supposed to be significantly smarter. He stood up, patting the red stains from the bricks clean against his tattered jeans. Wndy copied his motions, looking curiously, but dutifully waiting for his lead.

 

“There is a great risk of being caught today,” he spoke blankly around his thumb, “the best we can do now is to wait up at the front until they open the door and then run.” He avoided mentioning that there was a 68% that only one of them could successfully escape. It was an extra tidbit of information that would only worry her. Only a small 2% spoke that they both would successfully escape.

 

Wndy nodded grimly, grabbing a thick broken stick and a piece of rock from the rubble in the old shop. The rock would shatter within impact, but the stick would last at least four hits. L did not take anything with him, as the extra weight added with his bag would just slow him down. They sneaked their way up towards the front door, avoiding all windows, and positioned themselves.

 

As expertly as a duo who has worked together for at least three years could, they charged as soon as the door opened.

 

* * *

 

Quillish Whammy shuffled through the results in surprise. When Rodger called him in from the main office due to these unbelievable results, he could barely believe his close friend. He immediately rushed to reach one of the test centres in London. Now, with those results in his hands and the boy that sat crouched unusually across him, he still couldn’t believe it.

 

Apparently the young boy was called L Lawlite, and was without a family since he was six years old and lived in an orphanage for merely two years before running away. Ever since then, he had been dubbed missing and forgotten from people’s minds. When they caught him yesterday night, he was with someone else, a girl who had escaped them.

 

Mr. Whammy stared at the boy in all his wild shaggy hair and crouched glory. At a glance he could already see the obviously intelligent and depthless black eyes and wondered to himself- how could somebody forget those? 

 

He sighed at the likeminded stupidity of ordinary people and knew a person like Lawlite would greatly benefit the world. He had easily scored the highest marks in almost all the variations of tests and subjects.

 

Mr. Whammy smiled politely at L and introduced himself.

 

* * *

 

“Good day, young Mr. Lawlite, isn’t it?” The man in front of him questioned politely. The man seemed to carry an air of ambiguity and intelligence. Interestingly enough, he looked similar to the man who had previously gawked at him.

 

“One might classify this day as ‘good’, but I have not yet to enjoy myself and the sun will set in a one hour fourty three minutes and twenty seven seconds in counting.” Lawlite answered.

 

The man’s eyebrows rose, as his eye lit in understanding. L watched him as he laughed apologetically and maintained a kind façade. “Yes, my formal apologies in that. Now correct me if I am wrong, but your name is L Lawlite, orphaned at 6, runaway at 8, and were found hiding inside a small old tea shop, along with a female who had escaped.”

 

This confirmed most of L’s suspicions, but he remained silent about most of them. “Yes, you are correct. I would like to know who I am speaking with. I can only assume you are in close acquaintance with the government, and that there is an 89% chance you have a very important hand in these intelligence tests- you are possibly leading them.” And after a pause, L figured that he should ask- since he did not have enough information to make a deduction himself- “What is your purpose with these tests.”

 

“All your assumptions are correct,” the man smiled at him appraisingly, “My name is Quillish Whammy. You may call me Mr. Whammy. You are smart, though it would take some training to remove some of the brashness, but you’d be a great student and possibly a greater ally.”

 

L watched silently, eyes curious and brain working ten times faster, but remained silent.

 

Mr. Whammy chuckled, obviously taking a liking to him- something he could take advantage of, if he wished to, and he immediately stored the thought at the back of his mind.

 

“You see, L, we are planning on opening a school of sorts- a school for people like you- for young geniuses who need nurturing, a guiding hand to help them exercise their potentials. You see, it is with their best interests in mind. We wish to give them a place where they meet others like them while giving protection and high education.” Mr. Whammy stroked his large moustache, and continued “Of course, we cannot have everyone knowing our student’s identity so we require you to have an alias. However your first name seems ambiguous enough, so it should be alright”

 

Mentally, Lawlite broke down the sentences spoken by Mr. Whammy, and tried connecting them with what he knows about the world. Quillish Whammy waited patiently, opening the door when refreshments arrived. A slice of cake and tea was placed in front of each of them.

 

L slowly reached out to a fork beside the cake and delicately balanced it with the tips of his forefinger and thumb. Once he finished the cake, he returned to staring at Mr. Whammy, head tilted.

 

“I do not mind being called singularly by my first name, but I must enquire something before I comply. What may have you done to cause most governments to agree to this great of a scale? I believe it is not possible to get many of them to agree without a bigger plan behind what you have spoken.” L spoke, a silent inquiry behind his blank tone.

 

Mr. Whammy’s eyes widened slightly, eyebrows rising. “Well, Mr. Lawlite, there are some secrets a man must not say. But rest assured; it is all for the sake of justice.” Quillish observed him before continuing, “I have been in need of a protégé for quite a while now. Would you be interested?”

 

“If I agree, you will explain everything in explicit detail.” L gazed innocently as he spoke.

 

Mr. Whammy chuckled, “Very well…”

* * *

 


	3. Beyond Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byron Beckham  
> Alias: Beyond Birthday (BB)  
> Many mistake his genius for craze

Another birthday.

 

Honestly, why do people glorify a simple 24 hours? It just marks another number in the countdown towards death. He had wasted a better part of the day doing some kind of shitty test for a protection programme of sorts for smart kids. The whole thing was stupid- and obviously a big ruse. Since it’s the government making everyone do those tests, it was common sense it was for some plan obviously not pretty. It was stupid how many people trusted the worldwide act to locate genii.

 

Byron Beckham was a young city boy who just turned 14. He was ordinary looking- with spiky jet black hair and pale skin. The only oddity in him physically was his blood red eyes. Those make anyone with half a brain scream bloody murder. Well, technically, a person with half a brain would die long before being able to register he had red eyes, but that was beside the point.

 

Byron was always considered to be an odd boy. It wasn’t only his eyes, although they did play a great part in it. He always stared above a person’s head at first meetings- which probably didn’t create a good first impression. He loved sneaking up on people and scaring them, which obviously did not improve his reputation as the devil’s spawn. That combined with his strange cackling laugher and unhealthy obsession with strawberry jam categorized him as the odd and creepy boy of the town.

 

It certainly didn’t help that his first and only friend around these parts died just the day after his ninth birthday. The rumors said that Marc, his friend, had not gone to his planned party for the two of them and so Byron murdered him. Though those rumors had some credibility- it was true they had planned something together for that day- Marc had died due to drug overdose.

 

Byron had watched the numbers above his friend’s head dwindle faster, though back then he had no understanding what they meant, as he started taking those drugs. He watched Marc smoke weed, intake coke and inject heroin for a year, each time making the numbers change. It was on the day of his birthday, his friend canceled on the plans when they just met up. Byron let him when he noticed something. The numbers above Marc’s head had stilled, and Byron could only watch his friend leave in astonishment.

 

As soon as he came back home, he jotted down the numbers and realized that it was a date, including the exact timing- the next day, in fact, in exactly 4:25 am. Byron cackled wildly, remembering his stupidity back then, at his eagerness for the next day to come. It was the day he realized exactly what the numbers meant- the death day. He felt hollow that day, for both his friend’s death and his inner realization. Of course, now that it has been a few years since, he came in terms with the knowledge of his powers; and that he could see neither numbers, nor his own name above head.

 

Byron shifted slightly to a more comfortable position in his boulder, dipping his fingers in the jar of strawberry jam beside him. Slowly, he pulled his fingers out and brought them closer to his mouth, carefully not dripping any on the dirty rock below him. He carefully licked them off each of his digits, moaning at the taste- honestly, who’d want friends if they had this heavenly goodness to themselves.     

 

After wasting an hour staring at the starry night sky and insulting each of the constellations present, he realized that his fingers were spotless even after dipping them in the jar again. Byron groaned, when he pushed himself to a sitting position and saw that the jar was nearly finished. He scowled deeply, resigning himself to going back to his mother’s apartment again.

 

 _Happy Birthday Me! It’s been enough of a wasted day to be considered as another one of my birthday! Congratulations!_ He scoffed at his mental self-celebration, partially because of how true it was and partly because he couldn’t care less about it.

 

He grumbled ineligibly under his breath as he took out his key from his jean pocket and rammed it through the key hole.

 

He slammed the door back, alerting the only other person in the apartment of his arrival.

 

* * *

 

 

Quillish Whammy knew that by this protection act, they would uncover a lot of undiscovered genii from all sorts of different places, but the variety still astounded him. While none of them exceeded L’s talents, they had done astoundingly.

 

L and Mr. Whammy had created a system of sorts- Mr. Whammy checked the multiple tests according to general situations and quick thinking skills, as well as level of education level. L was then given the exceptional ones and he observed the personal data of the person from the governmental databases and camera recordings; L was unbiased to race or religion, so he was an ideal candidate to choose who enters final selection.

 

L had also introduce another system that separates the broad age range to three different categories- the young kids of ages 4 to 9, young teenagers of 10 to 14 and lastly, L’s age range of 15 to 17. L had also set the limits of the amount of students entering in each category, so that Whammy House would only carry the best of the bests.

 

Currently, it was 1:15 am in the morning and Mr. Whammy and L both worked tirelessly through the batch of tests taken the previous morning of United Kingdom, and two to three days ago in other countries.

 

“It seems that we’ve got another genius from the Great Britain. A Welsh boy, named Byron Beckham, of second category, lacking in behavior and abundant in hatred. He seems to be undeniably smart and has a possibility of improvement.” L droned while typing in his new computer.  

 

“I see…” Mr. Whammy hesitated, “Does he seem like Whammy House material?”

 

“Yes, or I would have seen it to be pointless to inform you of his existence.”

 

Quillish Whammy sighed, taking a sip of his calming tea. “I see. What may his rankings possibly be, compared to the others so far.”

 

L replied in a monotone, “According to his talents and intelligence levels, he may possibly be the highest one of second category.” Quillish choked on his tea, but L continued, unperturbed, “However, with more than half of the world’s population still untested, his possibilities range from first to fifth. Are you alright Mr. Whammy?”

 

Mr. Whammy coughed for a while longer before sighing and stroking his large moustache. “Yes, perfectly fine. It’s just this old body’s acting up. Now, where were we?”

 

L observed him for a while longer, a small smile playing on his lips, but his voice remained dull and unaffected when he responded, “We must visit him ourselves and formally introduce the Whammy purpose. I suspect he will be utmost displeased if we just bring him in and explain it at the same time as others, after all the testing is finished.”  

 

Mr. Whammy nodded sagely, “I suppose so. Well then, let me call our personal plane to take us there.”

 

L rose up from his odd crouch-like sitting position and started walking away, and Quillish realized he had never questioned L’s reasoning to sit like that. “May I ask why do you not sit properly in a chair?”

 

L glanced back briefly and lifted a shoulder, “I had realized that sitting like that increases my thinking ability by 40 percent.”

 

“Ahh, I see,” Mr. Whammy smiled, “So you do so because you find that position comfortable- maybe because you’re more used to it.”

 

“… Possibly”

 

* * *

 

 

Byron grumbled as awareness retuned to him with the rising of the sun. He had slept restlessly the day before, a gut feeling insisting that something big is going to happen the next day. He had tried figuring out what, long since learning to trust his gut when it spoke, but nothing came to mind as it raced through the possibilities.

 

He stumbled out of the bed, picking a shirt from the ground at random and leaving the jeans he slept in as it was. Just as he started opening the door, however, he heard voices outside. His mind immediately started ruling out possibilities- while his beloved mother always whored herself out at nights for money, she _never_ brings clients back home.

 

He knew his mother’s voice from anywhere, though, and he _knew_ that was her laughing and talking soberly. Both of which were an oddity- his mother always had a sorrowful smile at best and she was barely ever sober in mornings. That was how she dealt with her life- drink all mornings, eat bare minimum and primp up to whore herself at nights.

 

He hesitated briefly, wondering if he was supposed to stay inside, but then scowled. Whoever came to his home can go piss off and die if they couldn’t stand the sight of him. He will keep on doing what he usually does, fuck what the intruders thought. Really, he thought his mother knew better.

 

With a heavy scowl marring his face, he strode purposefully out of his room and to the kitchen. After all, no one should start their day this bad without jam. He noticed the noise in the ‘living room’ of their house slowed to a stop, but he ignored it and opened the fridge. He sighed blissfully at the sight of half the fridge filled with heavenly strawberry jam, and a few jars of blueberry jam.

 

He just grabbed the nearest jar when his mother’s voice called out, “Byron? Do come here, these gentlemen visited especially to see you.”

 

Byron rolled his eyes and spat the first thing that came to mind, “What? Finally decided you couldn’t handle your ‘devil’s spawn’ of a child and planned to sell me off to someone who collects freaks? Thanks but no thanks.”

 

His mother, Alice Beckham, gasped in outrage, “How dare you-”

 

“Technically, it was you who have attracted this attention to yourself,” A monotonous voice interrupted, “but, yes, we are in a mission to ‘collect freaks’ as you put it.”

 

Bryon froze and slowly closed the fridge, discreetly looking around for a weapon he could use. He immediately grabbed a thin flimsy knife on the kitchen counter and dipped it in the cool jam. Feigning a calm attitude, he walked out and slowly pulled the knife out, licking the jam clean from it as if it was a usual occurrence. Quietly, he observed the two strangers in the room.

 

“What do you want?” He spoke slowly, almost threateningly.

 

“I apologize for how my protégé worded that,” The older man with a fluffy grey moustache spoke, “You are Byron Beckham, am I correct?”

 

Byron sneered, dipping the knife in the jar harshly, “Oh no, you’ve got the wrong person. I’m goddam Isaac Newton- did you know my mother likes to call me random names sometimes? Isaac, Byron, Charles, Mathew, Albert _fucking_ Einstein- they all seem the same to her”

 

The old man shifted uncomfortably at that, but the younger male who sat oddly seemed unaffected. “Umm… yes, anyways,” The man coughed awkwardly, and a glance above his head told Byron that his name was Quillish Whammy- and that he would definitely burden the world with his presence for a long while.

 

Mr. Whammy then continued in the same confident tone as earlier. “You’re Byron Beckham, recently aged 14, your blood father dead since you were 2, your friend after your ninth, with blood red eyes and an unhealthy obsession with jam. I’m sure you’ve heard of the ‘young genii protection act’, no? Yesterday, you took the tests, so I’m assuming the answer is yes. Well, you have done exceptionally well in the aforementioned tests. You should be proud of yourself.”

 

Byron rolled his eyes at the pretentiousness, but barely refrained from sarcastically commenting again. He noticed that the boy beside the older man, with the name L Lawlite above his head, sigh in impatience, so it was not surprising when he took over the conversation.

 

“What Mr. Whammy is trying to eloquently say is that you are now in this programme. The Whammy House was created to unite the genii to a common good- for justice. You’ll be placed with others with similar capabilities such as yourself and erased from the world’s database-”

 

A wild cackling laughter interrupted L’s drone. “Great, they’ve finally done it! The government made a stupid _school_ to control those smarter than themselves. Ha! Hilarious! Gods, do you call it ‘greater good’ to fool everybody- ‘cause I can tell you now that it’s not working!”

 

The young genius sighed, waiting patiently until the laughter died down. Byron wiped an imaginary tear from the corner of his eye before turning around and walking away, “Sorry, I’m not going to be a part in all this. Ta”

 

Just as Byron started licking the jam coated knife again, L’s monotonous voice called out, “There is no legal way of not joining. We will give you the opportunity to leave this place- I suspect you do not have much of personal attachments to this place, for a place that will cultivate your talents. However, if you do not wish to join the Whammy House, then I will ask three riddles.”

 

Byron paused, considering his chances- he liked riddles, a fact this person most probably knew. It could be a preplanned tactic to make him join. But he enjoyed riddles and there was barely any riddle he could not solve. He smiled maniacally, and turned back.

 

“If you answer these correctly, we shall pretend to not know you. If you fail to do so, you will be under the obligation to join. As to not waste the whole day, I will give you a limited amount of time if that is alright. Half an hour to solve each riddle”

 

Byron nodded, pocketing the flimsy knife and dipping his fingers to take out a whole handful of jam. Once he finished messily licking most of it from his hand, he sneered, “so, are you going to tell me this riddle or not. Haven’t got all day, you know.”

 

Quillish Whammy grimaced at his behavior, but Byron ignored him, focusing all his attention in L. “Very well… The three will be of the same type- jumbled words. You seem to be very interested in Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein. The first one is a quote from Isaac Newton- Miss Beckham, could you pass me a pen and a piece of paper.”

 

Byron scowled, annoyed- he definitely wasn’t interested in either one of those two. But these word puzzles always had a theme, and he definitely wasn’t losing in a game involving riddles. He impatiently held out a hand as soon as L finished writing- not even focusing on the odd hold L had on the pen as he snatched it.

 

‘ _Gzxg rh gsv pmzxp lu nzprmt z klrmg drpslfg nzprmt zm vmvnb._ ’ Byron snorted, eyes dull and bored- it was _too_ easy. It was answered with the simplest of code breaking ways. He would be complaining if it weren’t for the fact that if it remained this easy, then he would have no problem with getting them to leave him alone.

 

Byron scooped some jam by his left hand as he scribbled the answer messily with his right. ‘ _Tact is the knack of making a point without making an enemy_.’ He snorted at that but shook his head and handed the now jam stained page back to L. “Done, the alphabets are flipped in their positions. Now give me the next one.”

 

L seemed to have smiled a little, but Byron couldn’t be sure. Lawlite then wrote another one on the same page and handed it to Byron. “Albert Einstein” L supplied.

 

Byron nodded, not necessarily caring, and set himself to solve the next one. ‘ _Zit royytktfet wtzvttf lzxhorozn qfr utfoxl ol ziqz utfoxl iql ozl sodozl._ ’ It was trickier than the previous ones, and Byron applied all the list of sequences he knew of. He jotted down the possibilities as he licked his left hand clean. He paused when he realized this code followed the QWERTY keyboard scheme. He scoffed at himself for not realizing that before- that’s another ten minutes of his life wasted- and wrote the decoded script. ‘ _The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits_.’

 

He slightly recognized that quote from a book he had read before for school and knew for sure it’d be correct.

 

Before he knew it, L had handed the paper back to him, flipped, with a simple coded word- ‘Pklscbw.’ Byron frowned- it looked more complicated than the earlier two. He had a suspicion it was coded with letters of the man’s choice, but planned to cross check before he complained.

 

Before Byron could do so, L spoke up. “Many have believed in it, but only a few know how to truly implement it.”

 

Byron narrowed his eyes, now confirmed that the coded words were the answer to the man’s riddle and that he could not decode it with common techniques. He frowned, his mind coming out with many different possibilities- such as time, effort, patience, leadership- but none of them were a seven lettered word.

 

“Your time has run out.”

 

Byron glowered, “There is nothing that matched your stupid word. You could have just made it up randomly.”

 

The young male smiled, “Justice”

 

Byron’s eyes widened in realization- how could he have missed that? The teen kept on blathering on about justice every second. Stupid people always believed that ‘true justice’ or some shite like that would prevail, but all lawyers and court members knew that it was false. Byron didn’t believe anyone actually acted on it, but there must be some who did.  

 

He let out a defeated chuckle, “Fine, you win.”

 

Lawlite nodded and stood up, “My name is L and the man beside me is to be called Mr. Whammy. You will need to think up an alias for yourself and all recorded data about you will be erased permanently. Have a good day, Byron, and you to miss Beckham. We shall pick you up for Whammy house within the next five months”

 

Byron watched as his mother distantly nodded, clearly shocked by the whole ordeal, and Mr. Whammy and L leading themselves out. He grinned at the implications to whatever L had said- he’ll definitely enjoy himself if that was true. And to think, he had a shitty birthday just the day before.

 

Just as Mr. Whammy was closing the door, Byron realized the perfect alias for himself.

 

“Hey Lawlite!” He called out. Calling the teen with his surname made both of them freeze, but Byron did not comment on it. Instead, he just grinned maniacally and said, “I’m Beyond Birthday”   


	4. Mihael Kheel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mihael Kheel  
> Alias: Mello  
> No one can deny the ambition behind his bright eyes.

It was a bright and sunny day, a large contrast to the frigid coolness of the winters that had just passed. His father hadn’t left the house for nearly a whole month, and Mihael assumed it was because of the greater number of eyes everywhere for the past three months. Though Mihael was never actually given the specifics of his father’s job, he knew his father had a less than legal job as a business man and mafia overlord. And from the occasional help Mihael himself did, he knew that it’d be bad if the authorities found out.

 

However, right now, none of that mattered since it was a bright day and Mihael was determined to spend the morning for a barbeque. His mother had already called his tutors and canceled the classes for the day. It wasn’t as if he really _needed_ them- he truly enjoyed learning things and could understand by going through the texts himself without any explanation.

 

“Mama, come on! Father already started cooking the ham!” young Mihael called out as he ran out to their backyard.

 

His father, Richard Kheel, chuckled at his eagerness. They rarely got to truly enjoy themselves together as a family. Richard could suppose it was one of the benefits of the higher number of authorities around. Mihael himself had just given the tests a few days ago, though he never really mentioned what they had tested, he had mentioned it had gone well. Richard could only hope that Mihael’s talents did not draw too much attention to the boy. Then again, he had an entire mafia at his disposal, and he wouldn’t be afraid use them to protect Mihael.

 

The smell of something burning caught his attention. He looked down to see the veggies burnt on the barbeque. The sound of laughter distracted him again as he started removing the burned vegetables.

 

Mihael entered his field of vision, smirking in amusement. “Dad, you burned them again.” Laughter was still evident in his tone as he continued, “mama’s going to get mad- she says vegetables are going expensive these days and you just wasted them.”

 

Richard snorted- he was rich, so why would he worry about prices. But his wife was a catholic and believed in not wasting anything. He crouched to Mihael’s height and stage whispered, “I don’t even like vegetables. Let’s keep this a secret between us- from a father to son. Don’t tell your mother.”

 

Mihael giggled and pointed at something- or rather someone- behind Richard. “Don’t tell your mother what, exactly?”

 

Richard paled slightly as he turned around to face the only woman who could scare him this easily- and the only woman he loved. “Vera, dear, how are you doing this fine day?” He hummed out nervously, turning around and pretending to fuss about the ham as if that’s all he had been doing.

 

Vera Kheel turned her attention to her son, fixing his mussed shoulder length hair as she spoke “Mihael, what was your father talking about before I came?”

 

Mihael pretended to think for a while, before flashing a devious grin at his father. “Sorry father, but mother says that it’s not good to sin by lying.” He spoke in false innocence. “Father burned the veggies and tossed them on the ground with all the soot from the barbeque.”

 

Vera narrowed her eyes at her husband, “You will clean that up. Do not ask for help from either Mihael or the servants. That’ll be enough of a punishment.”

 

Richard sulked but complied, giving a loose peck on both Vera and Mihael’s cheek, “The ham’s done, by the way.” He told them as he walked off inside.

 

Vera smiled as her son laughed wildly. Her son, she knew, would grow up beautifully. Mihael had her bright blue eyes, sharp jaw structure and slim figure, but had his father’s blond hair and nose structure. He already was considered adorably handsome, and Vera knew he’d be a fine man one day. Thankfully not too soon, though.

 

Mihael ran off, kicking the football around the backyard, playing as both player and opponent. He was used to playing alone, though he did always wonder how it’d be to play with many people, he didn’t necessarily mind it. His uncles and some of his father’s trusted men did occasionally play with him, but they didn’t count since they were older.

 

“Mihael! The foods ready!” Richard called out after a while.

 

He grinned and nodded, rushing towards his parents.

 

* * *

 

 

Quillish Whammy was busier these days than he had ever been in his life. With that being said, he did not mind the extra work at all. He enjoyed the work and wisely knew that all his efforts here will not go to waste. No two tests were same, and the whole process just built up excitement. L had already selected the few individuals who were going to be the teaching staff and the extras.

 

A thin black folder suddenly entered his field of vision, blocking him from the papers he was checking. He blinked in confusion; glancing down at L’s patient stare, then back at the folder before he finally understood. Quillish sighed as he opened the folder, “is it another child that we have to personally introduce the Whammy system to?”

 

L nodded, “You are correct. Mihael Kheel is bright and the potential within him is very high if he works hard. He is 7 years old, of Russian blood. We must inspire the need to fulfill his potential- there is a 78% chance when we succeed, he will be devoted into being the best.”

 

Quillish nodded, learning earlier on to not doubt L’s percentages, and scanned through the folder. “His father leads in a large mafia group?” He questioned, “If that’s the case, then I doubt his family will be willing to send him to us.”

 

“Yes, that is why it’s necessary to make him _want_ to come.”

 

“I see… Once we are there, what do you suggest we should do?”

 

L stood in all his crouched glory, “You will leave that to me.”

 

Mr. Whammy sighed, “Very well. Would you like a piece of cake before we leave? It’ll be a long trip to Russia from here.”

 

L bit his thumb, “Yes, and I suppose two packs of gumballs and a box of confectionaries will do for the length of the travel.”

 

Whammy chuckled, “Of course.”

 

* * *

 

Mihael sat comfortably on the plush seat, a thick book in one of his hands and a chocolate bar in his other. His concentration was unwavering as he turned the pages, careful to not smudge any of them with the bar. He read the clues found by the detective, as well as the thought process. The turning of pages and occasional snap of the chocolate bar breaking was the only sound in the room.

 

That was how Vera Kheel found her son one evening after she finished handling the gardens. She smiled at the adorable sight of her seven years old son reading a book meant for sixth graders. She was again reminded of how proud she was of him and how thankful she was to god for gifting her Mihael.

 

Silently, she made her way towards her son, twirling the red carnations in her hands. “Hello Mihael dearie.” Vera smiled, pecking his cheek lightly.

 

Mihael jolted up, his concentration broken, and pouted, “Mama! I was reading” he gestured to the book.

 

“I can see that, my little angel, but I found these lovely carnations in the garden and thought you would like to choose which vase to put them. They reminded me of you.”

 

Mihael noticed the red carnations and grinned wildly. “I know where you can put them,” he stood up and rushed out of the room, leaving the now forgotten book. He poked his head out from the doorframe, “Come on Mama! I think they’d be perfect in the dining room.”

 

Vera gracefully followed her son, who had soon pointed at the black vase. “Do you want to know why they reminded me of you?”

 

At Mihael’s curious glance, she answered, “because carnations means ‘everlasting’ and red means love. You’ll always be my little angel Mihael.” She then gestured him to come closer and whispered into his ear conspiringly, “And, also, because red is your favorite colour.”

 

Mihael laughed and was going to comment when the sound of the doorbell alerted them of visitors. Vera frowned in confusion- they had no scheduled visitors’ today- but made her way towards the front doors. She opened the door slightly and peaked out.

 

There stood an old man, dressed in a suit and containing the air of a wealthy man, and a slouched young teen, in ordinary white cotton shirt and jeans. “Do I know you?” She began hesitantly, hoping that they’d introduce themselves.

 

The old man smiled reassuringly and spoke, “My name is Quillish Whammy and this is my protégé L” He held out a hand to shake, which she did after a beat.

 

She then turned to Mihael, “Could you call your father and your uncle from the study. Tell them two… gentlemen came by.”

 

As soon as Mihael ran off, she shifted uncomfortably on her legs, “Please do come in…”

 

She led them to the living room, and told them to sit. “I’ll go get some tea-”

 

The odd young teen, L, interrupted her, “That will not be necessary, though some sweets may be appreciated. Where may your husband be? We must discuss some urgent matters.” And with that he sat down, bringing his bare feet up with him on the couch.

 

She stared at him dumbfounded and nodded distantly, sitting down on the seat across them.

 

Meanwhile, Mihael walked towards his father’s study, his mind otherwise preoccupied with questions about who the strangers were. His mother obviously did not expect anyone today, nor did she recognize their names. For some unknown reason, he felt intrigued. He knocked lightly on the door and then opened it.

 

His father sat on the large leather chair, with his uncle and another man both facing his father. His father frowned in query when he noticed Mihael standing there.

 

“There are two people at the living room and- uh- mother said to inform you.”

 

Richard glanced at the two men in confusion, a look they both returned. He sighed, and got up. “Ok, then, lead the way.”     

 

It didn’t take them long to reach the living room, but Mihael refused to listen when his father tried to shoo him away.

 

“I would recommend young Mihael presence for our discussion today. It is, after all, about him.” The old man spoke politely. Mihael grinned in triumph at that, but Richard narrowed his eyes and placed a hand in front of Mihael protectively.

 

“We are from the ‘Young genii protection act.’ Your son had taken the test a week ago, am I correct?” And without waiting for a reply, Mr. Whammy continued, “Your son has extraordinary potential to learn- and we believe that when we provide the means, he will bloom beautifully.”

 

Mihael blinked, inwardly proud but confused. “What do you mean?” His father barked out impatiently.

 

“Mihael Kheel is selected to join the Whammy House for the genii- a new prestigious organization that will properly cultivate talents, such as ones Mihael has, from children all around the world. That was essentially the purpose of the tests we sent globally. Mihael- and all other children- will be properly protected there so you should have no worries for his safety or health.” The young teen with wide black eyes spoke in monotone.

 

The teen, L, then turned to Mihael. “Your talents are extraordinary. I’ve heard you have a huge interest in mystery and crime- we have that in common. You shall be among those just as smart as you, competing to be the very best in your interests. I aspire to solve cases that were labeled to be impossible, to defeat crime and bring true justice to the world. I will help the framed innocents and capture the criminal. Do you also wish to make the world a truly better place? Imagine the global crime rates dropping, or other problems the world faces today decreasing, all because of your input.”

 

With each word Mihael could only smile wider, anticipation building up within him. He knew he should be suspicious of all these farfetched claims, but he couldn’t bring himself to worry about them. After all, he _had_ given those tests, and if the governments of the world were backing on it- well, it would be amazing. He hesitated for a while, unsure about only one thing- he knew his father did illegal things, things which L was promising would be stopped; but would that mean his father would lose his job?   

 

“Now wait just a minute-” His mother began, but Mihael did not want the opportunity to be wasted and quickly exclaimed. “Yes!”

 

He had made up his mind- if he worked that high-up, he could protect his father while still stopping other crimes. He nodded resolutely, repeating another yes.

 

“It seems as though your son has chosen to join. You wouldn’t want to disappoint your son and the government, now would you Mafia Lord Kheel?” L spoke almost flippantly, as though they were talking about the weather.

 

The two men standing beside the couch tensed, but L ignored them. “You worry about your son’s safety constantly, which we will most assuredly provide. You cannot refuse to the government about this, and risk the extra attention to yourself. Furthermore, we will provide annual updates on Mihael, as long as you promise to delete it soon after.”

 

Mrs. Keel tried to protest, but silenced immediately when her husband placed a hand on hers. Richard Kheel sighed wearily, “Very well, what is going to happen now?”

 

Quillish Whammy, who had stayed silent all this while, finally spoke again. “We are going to erase all data relating to young Mihael here. This is for maximum security for the act as well as the children. You are to pretend he never existed in front of any outsider. Furthermore, Mihael would need an alias to call himself as. He will not have contact with you both, but you will be updated on his status.”

 

Mihael stood quietly, mentally trying to prepare himself for it. He almost giggled at the thought of a code name, but forced himself to think seriously about this. He tried to think of names that would be very unusual- something that wouldn’t connect with himself.

 

“We will have the best teachers and the highest technological advancements in everything. We will contact you again in three months.” Mr. Whammy smiled warmly and stood up. “We must leave soon, so have a good day-”

 

“Mellow,” Mihael interrupted. “Uh- no- Mello, without the ‘w’; I want that to be my code name.”

 

“Of course,” Mr. Whammy ruffled a hand through Mihael’s long hair. “I hope to see you soon, Mello.”

 

Mihael looked at L, and then his parents, for approval- which was given to him in nods from all three, and a barely there smile from L. They left soon after, but Mihael could barely hold his excitement in place.

He couldn’t wait until Whammy House contacted again.

 

* * *

 


	5. Nate Rivers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nate Rivers  
> Alias: Near  
> Despite his intelligence, he was still a child at heart.

Nate Rivers could not understand what was going on in front of him. He could only stare blankly as his parents shook dolls and rattles in front of his eyes. He shrugged his shoulders- an expression he watched people on the television do at various moments- and ignored them. Though what they were doing was annoying and distracting, he was completely content to let them play on.

 

He hugged his own doll, a large white fluffy bear, closer to himself and then waddled off towards an unmade train set. He heard weird cooing behind him, but did not turn back to check- convinced it was his parent’s weird antics again. He sat down and started slowly and carefully setting each piece to place. Each piece was important to make the perfect picture, after all. And without one, nothing will look the same.

 

Listlessly, he grabbed the toy soldiers and a dino action figure, and just let his imagination bring up situations. Two of the ordinary civilians became his parents and he led the soldiers on as tactfully as a five year old could. The train carried all their supplies, and was the first thing to be destroyed. He’d imagine some soldiers disobeying rules and precautions and trying to handle things themselves. They were eaten by the dinosaur, obviously.

 

Just as he began imagining a situation when his toy parents were trying to pull the toy soldier version of himself away from the battlefield against his consent, an intruding hand holding the dino came. His real father mimicked a growling sound and grabbed the two civilians, making the dinosaur eat them. Nate sighed- oh well, that’s the death of his toy parents.

 

Nate then only watched as his father destroyed the carefully organized battlefield with random large jumps that should be realistically impossible. He could only narrow his eyes sulkily as the soldier on his hand- one that impersonated him- was the only one left. He shuddered at the thought of being the _lone_ survivor and dropped the toy immediately. He didn’t like the ending, and estimated his own death by lack of food was in near future in the scenario. 

 

He sulked for a while, annoyed at his father’s insistence to play with Nate’s toys. He can’t just remake the scenes; it was never possible with new factors every time. Usually he didn’t mind playing with others as long as they cooperated and could follow the story- but he felt annoyed that his father just interrupted and destroyed the story. His father was a billionaire with chain malls and hotels everywhere, yet he still interrupted Nate’s playtime instead of getting one for himself.

 

Nate glanced morosely at the now fallen soldiers and his dino, which was still in his father’s grip, and got up again. He slowly dragged his stuffed toy with himself as he took out an unsolved rubix cube. Since it was solely a one player game, he knew that his parents won’t disturb him.

 

Destiny Rivers sighed at another failed attempt to play with her son. He was almost always in the toy room, so both Destiny and her husband thought it would be easy to try communicating and playing with him. So far all attempts made by them failed, but she was determined to get through him.

 

Kyle Rivers dropped the toy dinosaur back on the ground in disappointment, somehow knowing that Nate’s abrupt stop was his fault. His wife gave him a small sad smile, which made him feel even worse. He was a smart business tycoon whose job involved knowing exactly what the other person wants, yet he couldn’t even understand his own child.

 

The mother and father just silently sat, watching Nate focus at the rubix he had yet to solve for nearly a week already. The closest he had gotten to was one side being the same colour half a month ago, but then he did his best to avoid that ever since.

 

Nate was always an odd child they could never understand. During his birth, both parents got worried that they hadn’t taken care of the baby well enough due to his pale skin and odd stock of white hair. He had inherited neither one of their eyes nor hair, which they later found out, was because he was albino. As a baby, he barley whined and just generally stared at everything with wide albeit dull grey eyes.   

 

His quiet nature contrasted deeply with his active actions when playing with toys. Honestly, sometimes Destiny feared that the only thing they could do to show they cared for him is provide him with toys and leave him to play alone.

 

It was quite a scary thought for a parent.

 

* * *

 

Quillish Whammy laughed at some of the unique answers given by kids of various ages. Only a quarter of those held some validity of a true hidden genius. Others however, were just point blank idiotic. Truly, there was no limit to stupidity.

 

He had just finished watching a series of oral tests- given to those who couldn’t write yet, or with certain disabilities- and could only say a handful of them truly had some credibility and talent. Others were random, yet lucky, so he gave no regard to most of those. L would be able to handle pinpointing which ones would be perfect candidates.

 

“I have found two perfect candidates for the younger group. Nate Rivers, aged 5, has a sharp mind perfectly suitable for the Whammy House system. His young age gives him bigger opportunities than most, and we must visit him immediately in hopes of convincing his parents.” L spoke as he held out two folders to Mr. Whammy.

 

“The second one is Mail Jeevas,” L continued, pronouncing the first name as ‘mile’. “Aged 7. He too has brilliant brain capacity, but observing his behavior, it’s easy to conclude that he will not try his best at many things. However, he also has great potential. We shall visit him in a few weeks, if we wish for his family to consider sending him.”

 

Mr. Whammy nodded in understanding as he read through the files. “I see, so shall we visit young Nate Rivers after we finish all this today?” He said, motioning to the decreasing pile of tests on his desk.   

 

L merely nodded and went back to his computer chair. He picked up a cellular phone with his thumb and forefinger and carefully searched the number of their personal pilot. Quickly he gave commands to prepare the plane for a flight to California, America.

 

“I suggest you hurry up, Mr. Whammy. Our flight will be ready in an hour.” L droned from his chair before resuming his own tasks.

 

Quillish chuckled when he heard that- L was truly stubborn when he wanted to be.

 

* * *

 

Destiny Rivers sometimes blamed herself for Nate’s reclusive personality. Both she and Kyle had been young when she was found to be pregnant. Kyle had been twenty one and had just inherited the business from his father as the heir. She was nineteen, and was happily dating him while trying to make her own career in nursing. The unexpected pregnancy led to a rushed marriage to avoid a huge scandal.

 

All the rush nearly caused Nate to be born prematurely, but luck was on their side for that part. Due to them still trying to build up their own careers, Destiny and Kyle had hired many nannies to take care of Nate. Now, in Destiny’s opinion, that was her worst mistake.

 

She sighed- her son was still five years old after all, they still had time to create a bond. Hopefully, they hadn’t messed up too much.

 

She took a sip of her calming tea, and watched Nate play with the rubix cube silently. Destiny had to smile at that. If Nate could be so patient to solve the cube despite being four years old, surely they could also be patient for Nate since they were grownups.

 

Knocks on the door interrupted her sad musings. “Enter,” She called out.

 

“There are two men at the door miss. Should I bring them here?” The maid asked politely once she stepped inside.

 

“Of course,” she nodded, “Could you prepare some more tea and snacks? And do call my husband out, would you? I swear, sometimes I wonder if he is trying to murder himself with all the work he appoints himself.”

 

The maid laughed and walked out. Soon enough an old man and a slouched teenager entered the play room. Nate only briefly glanced at the two, before focusing back on the cube.

 

“Good Evening Mrs. Rivers” The old man began politely as he sat one of the few chairs in the room.

 

“Good Evening …?” Destiny trailed off.

 

“Quillish Whammy,” He held out a hand to shake, which she did. “and the person beside me is my protégé, L.”

 

Destiny nodded and stayed silent for a while, studying the old man’s profile. She then continued. “Well, my husband will be here in a moment. I apologize for assuming things- but if you wish to discuss business, even though it’s a weekend, then he will lead you to the study room.”

 

The man laughed. “I’m not here for that, though I understand how you would get that impression. I’m here to talk about your son, actually. Young Nate Rivers seems to be a very talented boy.” 

 

Destiny nodded in confusion, “Yes, he is very bright, though not very active.” She chuckled awkwardly, “Most of the times, I don’t even understand what he is thinking or imagining in that little head of his.”

 

Mr. Whammy nodded in understanding, “It’s not unusual-”

 

“You wouldn’t understand because his mind is in a higher level than ordinary. It’s truly unfortunate though, that he had people who wouldn’t be able to fully understand him as his parents.” A droning voice interrupted the older man.

 

Destiny was startled, completely forgetting the presence of the odd- and honestly creepy looking- teenager beside Mr. Whammy. Then she flinched when she finally realized she was being insulted for her parenting skills.

 

Before anyone could say another word, however, a tall but slim man entered the room. Destiny sighed in relief at the sight of her husband as he casually made his way towards the guests, shaking each of their hands before sitting down on the chair beside Destiny.

 

Kyle Rivers smiled politely, charisma rolling off him in waves. “Afternoon gentlemen, and wife, how are you today?” Then Kyle frowned, “I’m sorry for asking this, but I seem to not remember a few things at times- do I know you both?”

 

Mr. Whammy replied, “No, I’m afraid we haven’t met formally. I’m Quillish Whammy, and this is my protégé L.”

 

Quillish paused for a while, looking at both Mr. and Mrs. Rivers to ensure they were listening. “I’m sure you recall Nate taking the intelligence tests a few days ago, yes?” When they both nodded, he continued, “We’re from the ‘YGP’ act, and we believe that Nate has an extraordinary mind as well as great potential.”

 

Destiny nodded, knowing Nate was truly brilliant, while Kyle glanced at Nate’s direction. Nate was now playing with blocks; and behind him was a perfectly solved rubix cube. Mr. River’s staring prompted the others to do the same, and they watched in varying emotions of shock, impressed, knowing and elation.

 

“The Whammy House is an organization created to assist the purpose of the ‘Young Genii Protection act.’ We provide high quality education, food, medical attention and a home for those with talented minds.” Mr. Whammy said.

 

L continued, “The Whammy house is to provide the ideal surroundings and life for geniuses like Nate to prosper. And Nate’s extraordinary mind has proven him to also be eligible for the Whammy House System. Essentially, we shall be taking Nate, providing proper care and _understanding_ all his needs without him telling directly.”

 

“No, we will not let you take Nate from us.” Kyle growled, and Destiny had to rub her hand on his arm to calm him down. Kyle sighed and continued, “I understand you are saying that we will not be able to take care of Nate properly. We may make mistakes at times, but we _are his family._ I’ll be proud to slowly learn things about Nate as he grows than hand him over to strangers promising falsities.”

 

“I don’t think you understand- we are from the government and you have the obligation to assist your country in its needs. Furthermore, you have obligations as parents to do the best you can for your son. It must be difficult to not understand your son, but we can give him more than you could ever offer. Would you rather see him disappointed in life and people in general when they let him down one too many times? Or would you see him with others like him, brilliant and aspiring for the best?” L droned monotonously.

 

Kyle Rivers opened his mouth to protest- he may be 25, but he was rich and could provide the best for Nate himself- when Destiny Rivers grabbed his arm. He turned to her in confusion, and she merely shook her head.

 

“I understand. You are only looking out for what is best for little Nate,” Destiny said, her voice cracking a bit. “I, as a mother, am willing to entrust my son to your protection- but you must promise to take care of him perfectly. I don’t want to see him sad about anything… A-and, if we send gifts, could you hand them to him?”

 

Mr. Whammy smiled kindly, “Of course. You must think up an alias for him, though. It is vital for the Whammy House system for all legal information about him to be deleted and they should be given code names.”   

 

They spent a moment just sitting silently and watching Nate build towers and castles with miniature cannons and a king. He was clearly trapped in his own imagination, moving with great care as the castle grew bigger than him.

 

“Near- to remind us that he is close to our hearts no matter how far apart we actually are.” Mrs. Rivers sighed sadly.

 

Quillish Whammy gave her the warmest expression he could muster. “Thank you, Mrs. Rivers, be prepared for a message from us in three months’ time. It’ll explain everything in most explicit detail. Have a good day, Mr. and Mrs. Rivers.”

 

Destiny Rivers sighed, hoping she wouldn’t regret making this decision.


	6. Raito Yagami

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raito Yagami  
> Alias: Light  
> His perfect smile always lies

 

Raito Yagami sighed as he strolled down the streets. He had just come back from dropping his date back, and god, he was so _bored_. He inwardly shuddered about the events of the date- he had met up with that annoying girl, Misa Amane, from two classes above his own, and he could literally feel his brain cells dying with each word. Half the time she kept on blubbering proudly about her recent acceptance to a modeling agency. Honestly, doesn’t she understand how grating she can be when she spoke in third person and the falsely cute tone of hers?

 

He played along until she tried to kiss him- he drew the line there. Of course he had politely rejected her advances and escaped in the lieu of being late for picking his sister from her rehearsals. He nearly snarled every time he had to act like prince charming to her mundane and pathetic problems. God bless his self-control.

 

“Ah, is this Raito-kun?” A soft voice called.

 

He jolted slightly, and immediately plastered a charming smile on his face as he turned. “Mrs. Tetsuya, how are you this fine day? You have truly brightened it more than ever by your beautiful presence.”

 

The old woman giggled at the praise. “Oh Raito! My old age con not handle this much flattery.”

 

He tutted, “Nonsense, someone like you deserves more than the measly one I gave you. Now, shall I accompany you to your home?”

 

“No need for that, it’ll make your trip home longer.”

 

“I insist; it won’t be much of a hassle. I’m not in any hurry.” Raito made his tone as reassuring as acceptable in this sort of situation.

 

“Thank you, Raito-kun. Your mother has raised a fine boy indeed.” Mrs. Tetsuya chuckled.

 

He started walking again, this time in the other direction, making up small talk with the old woman. Soon enough, they arrived in front of her home and she bid her farewells. Well, actually, she spent quite a while insisting him to join her inside and another while insisting he shouldn’t leave without a gift as a thanks.

 

Raito sighed tiredly, as much as his mind raced faster than many adults, his fifteen year old body could handle only so much acting per day. And he already squeezed out most of his skills for Misa. Damn his polite façade.

 

He quickly jogged the rest of the way home, knowing his mother would worry if he took a long time to get back. He knocked first, and then entered the home. “I’m home Okaa-san!”

 

“Welcome back Raito-kun!” His mother called out from the kitchen. Sachiko wiped her hands on her apron as she came out to greet her son. “How is the group project going with … umm…” she trailed off, forgetting the person’s name.

 

“Kaoru-kun, and well, it’s coming out perfectly. He may not be a great student in class, but he had made many brilliant contributions to the project already.” Raito lied, smiling as if he was happy for his classmate.

 

His mother chuckled, “Of course, don’t discredit yourself too much though. I bet it was you who inspired him to work this hard.”

 

He looked down for a moment, as if embarrassed, and then looked up again. “So, how is Sayu’s dance recital for the swan princess going on?” He quickly changed the topic.

 

“Why don’t you ask her yourself? She seemed very excited about managing a difficult move. Apparently you gave her some tips.” Sachiko laughed, reaching out and ruffling his hair. “Though, the poor dear, she fell asleep as soon as she touched the bed.”

 

Raito huffed in mock annoyance due to his now mussed up hair- but honestly, he didn’t mind it if his mother did it. “I’m sure she’ll tell me all about it during dinner. How’s father’s new case going on?”

 

“They’ve almost cracked it, I guess. He just called and said that he’ll be back in two or three days.” She sighed.

 

Raito hummed in understanding, silently disappointed that he wasn’t called to help, but also proud of his father. “Oh, well, I’m tired so I’m going to my-”

 

“Yes, you must be tired, my poor child. Do you want me to bring up some snacks?”

 

“No need for that. I think I’ll take a nap like Imouto did.”

 

His mother nodded, smiling at him once more before walking back inside the kitchen to continue preparing dinner.

 

He walked upstairs to his room and locked the door. He sighed, turning on his laptop and started searching online for information. He would have to complete most of the project today and leave some tiny bits for Kaoru to add up his own contributions.

 

After all, the key to lying is to stick as close to the truth as possible.

 

* * *

 

Quillish Whammy exhaled in relief as his pile for the day was over. The papers have been reducing in amount recently, due to many of the bigger cities already finishing the whole process. Not that he usually minded the extra load; it’s just good to have a good tea break in between.

 

He peaked at L with the corner of his eye and saw the teenager sitting back on his haunches, with a singular piece of paper held precariously between thumb and forefinger. Quillish frowned at the lack of activity from L and walked towards him.

 

He was going to gently scold L for not doing his part of the work, when he noticed the scattered mess of folders, pictures, an open file and a blinking laptop on the low table. The laptop was connected to the computer, acting as an extension.

 

“L…?” Quillsh silently questioned.

 

“I have been wondering about this boy’s skill for a week so far.” L spoke, setting down the paper- a picture- and gestured to the open file. L waited until Mr. Whammy finished reading it before he continued. “While he seems ordinary- yes, smart and skilled, but still to an ordinary level- there is something missing.”

 

Quillish watched as L carefully padded towards the laptop and began typing something. L then turned the screen slightly towards Quillish’s direction and a series video began. It was about a Japanese brunet and his daily activities. All Mr. Whammy could gather about him was that he was decently talented, polite and a liar who spewed waves of charisma and charm.

 

Comparing his numbers with the videos, Mr. Whammy would say he was an over achiever and not Whammy House material. He voiced his opinion to L.

 

L nodded, “It would seem like that at first glance, wouldn’t it? But there is something off about him.” 

 

“So, what do you suggest we do?” Mr. Whammy questioned.

 

L stayed silent and instead replayed the series of videos a few more times. His eyes narrowed as he finally spoke after a long while of silence. “There is a high enough percentage that he may just as well be an extremely talented genius and I conclude that we shall visit him in a few days.”

 

Quillish sighed and nodded, “I feared you may say that. Very well, we shall introduce Yagami Raito to the Whammy house in a few days.”

 

L nodded and started pushing away all Raito-related files to a corner of the table. He took out other files and walked towards the computer chair, continuing his work.

 

Quillish smiled and began properly setting up the files L pushed away. After a while, Mr. Whammy broke the silence again. “So, what is the percentage of change that he may actually be a scheming genius?”

 

L just spared him a glance before replying while biting his thumb nail. “19%”

 

Mr Whammy hummed and nodded, “That is quite high.”

 

* * *

 

 

“I did awesome, didn’t I?” Sayu couldn’t hold off her proud grin as she said this.

 

Raito chuckled and ruffled her intricately styled hair, “Oh, I wouldn’t say awesome…” He trailed off, humor evident on his face.

 

“Raito-nee!” Sayu whined and pouted. She punched Raito’s stomach, which was at her eye level, repeatedly in annoyance.

 

Raito put on a mock innocent expression, “Why are you hitting you dear elder brother,” he pretended to wipe a tear playfully, “I didn’t do anything!”

 

Sachiko could help but chuckle at her children’s dramatics. “Come one both of you. Tone down on the excitement until we are home. Sayu, your performance was spectacular. Raito, I think that’s enough of the friendly teasing.”

 

Raito hummed nonchalantly while Sayu giggled and bounced on forward to catch up to their parents. They soon arrived home with little more occurrences.

 

Once home, Raito began helping his mother cook late dinner, despite her protests. Soichiro Yagami was silently watching the news, and Sayu Yagami slowly cleaned up all the stage makeup and adornments from herself.

 

The sudden ringing of the doorbell disrupted the relaxed and peaceful atmosphere that surrounded them. Raito sighed, placing the knife beside the cutting board. “I’ll open it.” He declared before his father could get up from his comfortable position.

 

The fifteen year old made his way towards the door and peaked out the peephole. He could only make out two figures, one of an old man and another of a shadowed teen. He promptly placed a charming smile on his face and smoothly opened the door.

 

“Good Evening, how may I help you?” He asked smoothly, as if he was completely undisturbed by finding strangers on his doorstep. While still holding the smile, he observed the two. The old man seemed polite and rich, having the soothingly honest and submissive aura around him. The younger male beside him however, nearly made Raito shudder in disgust if it weren’t for Raito’s impressive control over himself. Eyes as if he hadn’t slept for years, pale palour and a slouched figure all made Raito wish to stay away from the obviously socially defective boy.

 

“We are from the government, actually, and we wish to talk to you and your parents about some matters.” The old man answered in fluent Japanese.

 

Raito mentally raised an eyebrow in disbelief about the teenager, but the only thing that showed on his face was an innocent confusion. “Come in,” he further opened the door and closed it behind them.

 

He led them in- thankfully they knew enough manners to open there shoes and slippers in front of the door, even if they looked foreign- and took them to the living room. “Otoo-san, there are some people who want to talk…?” he trailed off, keeping his confusion in place.

 

He glanced at the two and ushered them into the room. He walked to the kitchen and called his mother out too. As soon as all of them were properly seated, Raito looked at the duo again and froze when he saw the creepy black haired guy staring back at him. He then observed him further and felt annoyance spark within himself.

 

The teen across him sat with his feet up at the couch, in an awkward crouch-like position, which initially triggered Raito’s annoyance and disapproval. The teen also had his thumb between his teeth and continued to stare at Raito even after Raito caught him doing so. The lack of social etiquette was obvious, since one was not supposed to do any of those in company of others.

 

All Raito offered after observing all that, however, was merely a weak smile that portrayed confusion and ignorance to the teen’s oddness.

 

The room held a tense silence for a while as the teen kept on watching Raito with his hollow black eyes. The only sound was of the running water upstairs.

 

Finally the silence broke when the teen turned to his companion and spoke in English, “I believe the percentage of my assumption being correct has increased to 35.9%. We shall now engage the topic of Whammy House.”

 

Raito frowned at the strange wording, since he was the only one in their family who could understand English fluently. His father cleared his throat, “I’m sor-rey” He began in broken English, “bu-t my fa-ma-ly-”

 

He was interrupted by Raito when he asked “Otoo-san, shall I?”

 

Soichiro nodded and watched proudly as Raito spoke English smoothly and fluently.

 

“I offer my deepest apologies, but my family is not fluent in this language as you and I. Would you mind speaking in Japanese, assuming you do know how to do so?” Raito spoke politely with a small charming smile. He made sure to not question what the two were talking about previously, and also ensured he didn’t smile overtly, since he was still supposed to portray confusion.

 

“Ah-yes, sorry about that,” the old man chuckled nervously, now speaking in Japanese. “I am Quillish Whammy, and the young man beside me is my protégé, L. We are representatives of the ‘Young Genii Protections Act,’ which I’m can assume you all have heard of?”

 

Soichiro hummed in understanding so Mr. Whammy continued, “So, you see, young genii’s from all around and found and chosen to join the Whammy House- an institute that acts both as a safe place and a place to cultivate talents of the genii- to be among more like them. You should be proud because your son is chosen and found as a genius.”

 

Soichiro looked conflicted for a few moments- proud, resignation and unwillingness warring within his face. Raito mentally growled at the announcement, knowing he did his best to ensure he does not attract too much attention by anybody when he heard about the act and took the test. He made obvious mistakes, but not too much since he already had records of his genius earlier. How did it all go wrong? He immediately put on a mask of humility and shock, with hints of reluctance to show he did _not_ want to go.  

 

L continued where Mr. Whammy left off, “As a proud citizen serving your country, with the common law stating every citizen shall do the best they can for their country, Yagami-san, it would be in your best interest to accept. We do not take no as an answer, but we do give you the choice of accepting freely or be held for crimes of going against the government.”

 

Sachiko tightly gipped her husband’s hand, worry fighting against her maternal instincts. Raito, on the other hand, did not remain silent for long. “You are going against many, and emphasis on many, laws and rights for both as a citizen and as a human being to force someone to accept. I refuse” He spoke coldly, speaking in English so that his father does not understand.

 

L smiled enigmatically, and spoke in English. “That may be, but you are not yet of legal age and under no position to make decisions for yourself. You are fifteen, and it is in the hands of your parents who will choose what is best for you.”

 

Raito gaped slightly, an expression which was a milder version of the emotion of shock at the audacity he felt within.

 

Soichiro watched the two for a moment, but dismissed the brief conversation. “The Whammy house is something like a boarding school, honestly,” Mr. Whammy reassured the elder Yagami. “We will provide everything and you don’t even have to pay. We have the best of everything and the students will not be denied any of the facilities we offer. We only want the best for everyone, especially the children.”

 

“So what is your decision, Yagami-san?” L asked as Raito slowly got over the shock and anger.

 

Sachiko squeezed his hand lightly, indicating she would support any decision he makes, so Soichiro Yagami sighed. He only briefly considered the options before the word left his mouth. “Alright.”

 

L nodded and Mr. Whammy smiled, “Thank you. Now there is only one more thing,” Mr. Whammy paused as a heavy sigh escaped the elder Yagami. “You son will need an alias- a different name actually- for better protection, and we will require all information about him to be deleted. We can handle the digital part, though, so you don’t need to worry about the news or anything like that.”

 

“Okaa-san, I’m not sure if I want to change my name,” Raito made sure his face was as worried and scared as a fifteen year old could get in situations like this. He then gave a smile so very heartbreakingly sweet, “If I’m to go, then at least I want my name to be the one you named me at birth.”

 

Sachiko smiled at him, love and affection pouring out of her eyes. However, before she could reassure Raito of this, Mr. Whammy interrupted, “I’m truly sorry, but that cannot be done. It is necessary to change your name; it acts like a personal security shield.” 

 

Raito merely looked heavily disappointed at the news, though he was mentally growling at the man. It was necessary to keep the appearance of a meek and disappointed person so that his parents would feel obliged to support him. Plus, many have fallen for his puppy dog innocent eyes and could easily see Mr. Whammy’s own strong resolve slowly, but surely crumble.

 

L cleared his throat, capturing everyone’s attention from Raito to himself. He looked absurdly pleased as he glanced at Raito, then at Mr. Whammy. He then spoke, “You may choose to alter your name, but there must be a significant change.” He paused, placing his thumb between his teeth again, “How may the name ‘Light’ suit your standards?”

 

Raito growled but conceded, knowing that making a bigger fuss now would only cause problems.

 

Mr. Whammy stood, followed by L, “We really must be going now. Within three months, do expect a message from us which will explain everything in detail.”

 

Mr. Yagami nodded, but Raito suddenly stood up. Soichiro looked at his son in confusion but he just smiled and said, “I’ll close the door after them.”

 

Raito calmy walked the entire way to the door and opened it, ushering them out. Just before he closed the door, he felt like he should ask L, “How?”

 

“I just knew. It is very hard to hide something from me.” L intoned dully, but the humor in his eyes was evident.

 

Raito scowled and slammed the door shut.

 

“Raito-nii-san, Who was that at the door?” Sayu asked as she came down, hair still wet.

 

Raito let a small chuckle escape him when he realized Sayu missed the whole situation. “Oh, just some one important that little kids like you don’t need to know of.”

 

“Raito-nii!! Don’t be mean~”


End file.
